Category: small business

Changing the Way Small Business Are Financed

One of the major problems many economies have had to deal with is that which concerns catering to the needs of small businesses in a changing business environment. The traditional model of new companies turning to banks for finance was limiting for most entrepreneurs.

Small business owners found it unbelievably hard to secure funding through a bank, with loan requests being declined for reasons ranging from insufficient collateral to economic concerns, and everything in-between. This made survival difficult, never mind expansion.

Thanks to new fintech firms, small and medium businesses can now access cheaper alternative financing and grow. The innovative ideas and new developments brought by fintech companies have changed the business sector and made it easier for startups to navigate the financial services landscape through the following ways:

Advances

Fintech enables small businesses to get the funding they need to expand. Peer-to-peer lending sites such as Funding Circle, LendGenius, and Kabbage provide microloans for business owners that often have difficulty finding lending support. This helps make it possible for small businesses to carry on their operations unhindered.

The requirements for getting approved by these companies are less restrictive than commercial banks. Fintech advances also attract lower interest rates, involve little to no paperwork, and do not require collateral. Add the convenience that they offer on top of that, and you will see just how far financial technology has brought us.

Expense Tracking and Electronic Invoicing

Another way that fintech removes the barriers that small businesses encounter when they try to expand is that it provides them with reliable expense monitoring solutions that are flexible enough to allow them to meet their business needs.

Fintech firms like Sage offer tools with which small-sized businesses can monitor all the money coming in and going out of the company’s accounts. This helps business owners to understand how much money is in the business at any point in time, as well as how that money is being spent. When a business can have a clear picture of its finances in this manner, it will find it easier to make informed financial decisions.

Further, fintech enables small businesses to automate invoicing, simplifying the accounting process as a result. This helps entrepreneurs to not only deal with cashflow challenges but also to maximize efficiency.

Provision of Digital Payment Options

Before now, one of the major problems for businesses that operate on a small scale is how to send money across international borders. The procedures for sending funds across borders was long and tedious. As a result, it discouraged clients from buying from overseas businesses. Fortunately, payment solutions like PayPal, Stripe, Venmo, Skrill, etc., now make it easier for small business owners to accept payments globally. This enables businesses to achieve international growth, as any customer can pay for items regardless of their location.

Last Word

Fintech has contributed in no small measure to helping small-sized businesses to drive revenue and grow market share in a tough business environment by addressing the market failures that they encounter.

The ease with which organizations can access funding, track expenses and conduct business have significantly enhanced their ability to keep their finances in check, achieve growth, and measure results effectively.

Technology for Small Business

Technology is a valued resource for small businesses. Adopting the right technology helps give brands more flexibility and opportunities for innovation in product design and improves their business and operating income.

For most small businesses, technological advances are lowering transaction, transport, and communication costs, enabling firms to invest where they can be most productive and find the best combination of skills, investment opportunities, and business environment.

Here are some of the major technology trends that will streamline small business efficiency and productivity:

Internet

The advent of the internet offers small businesses more control over marketing, brand development, customer engagement and improves sales opportunities. Thanks to the internet, firms can now offer clients a more comprehensive value proposition that is tailored to their needs. What’s more, the incredible growth of the internet has helped position it as a powerful driver of economic growth, giving businesses the chance to streamline and consolidate their business operations with custom online solutions.

For instance, businesses now have the opportunity to improve business efficiency through a centralized database, which makes data easily accessible for all needs. Small business owners can also build an online presence by developing websites and utilizing various social media platforms to create awareness for their product and boost sales by reaching more people faster. Further, the internet offers businesses the chance to outsource labor they are too busy for or those they are not very conversant with.

E-Commerce

E-commerce is one of the major trends that are shaping the small business landscape. The growing number of internet users worldwide has necessitated businesses to be selling more online than through traditional brick-and-mortar stores. This is because owning an e-commerce store makes it easier than ever before for small businesses to reach tech-savvy clients who now prefer to shop and buy items through digital channels across industries.

Also, it is easier and cheaper to set up an e-commerce store than to maintain a physical storefront. E-commerce platforms such as Shopify, 3dcart, and Magento enable brands to develop an e-commerce store without breaking a sweat.

If you are on a budget, you can utilize a point of sale system such as Vend to create a cloud-based, mobile-friendly online store within a short time. Doing so will enable you to reach many consumers who due to convenience, addiction, and impulsivity, prefer to make secure purchases online. More so, e-commerce gives small businesses an opportunity to adopt technology that supports real-time commerce.

Digital Banking

Many tech-savvy clients nowadays value banking convenience. For this reason, they prefer to bank online than visit a physical bank location. This is gradually shifting transactions away from traditional banks to digital ones. And with millennials expected to rule the market, the switch might happen faster than predicted.

Blockchain

The blockchain technology is capable of causing significant shifts in the way small businesses are conducted. Its application in payments and money transfers, digital identity, distributed cloud storage, smart contracts, etc., is expected to cause shifts that will change the small business arena.

Today Digital Marketing become one of the significant keys for a various platform and as time pass it will become one of the potential platforms.The internet is highly used to promote a business because most of the people are depending on the internet for every activity and hence depending on the internet for developing business is becoming very common.There are so many e-commerce websites and you can get every type of product on the internet.To seek customers towards your website the SEO of a website is a vital factor as it directly affects your business.Therefore before opting for online business practices for SEO boosting should be considered well.

SEO management practices

There are various ways of online marketing.For better exposure of your product to get large numbers of users from across the world digital marketing will help you in a better way to take your business one step forward.To do say there are different types of practices for search engine optimization management and you can apply them to your website.Because a website is an essential component of your online promotion.Pay special attention to its design and structure and get a maximum outcome from it.Here are some tips that you must consider for boosting of the search engine optimization for your website.

Sponsored posts

Once you built a reputation of your website you will start getting endorsements for it and sponsored or guest post are part of it.To recognize your work there are chances that you will get offers for sponsored or guest posts.When you start sponsored post be sure that the content must be quality content, opinions must be honest and must be user-friendly.The most important factor is to be considered that you should only opt for sponsored posts which are well related to your website and must be informational which provide value to users.You can get more different topics through Sponsored posts to elaborate your website.Just maintain the reputation of your website while doing sponsored post by selecting post which is suitable for your site.

Social Media Practices that Help Boost SEO

It is important to connect or tie up with another website for boosting the SEO ranking of your website. But care should be taken while link back to other sites, don’t link back frequently without any reason because its affect your SEO traffic.because this factor is considered a malpractice in the world of SEO management.If you have a business website the ranking of the site is crucial because it is not easy to get search engines if your site did not get the consistent user through the internet.The website should be relevant to your websites with you are working with so that readers should get a related link to your website and do not feel cheated.

Get Help of expert

There may be a situation when you face difficulties or get confused about how to handle SEO traffic or website ranking. then you can take help of a professional expert.There are so many agencies which help you or provide authentic ways to manage your website and also business promotion works.Nowadays many businesses which help you to find appropriate SEO management agencies according to your need.

Conclusion

It can be concluded that To get the proper kind of practices for your business SEO management services are essential.You can manage lots of things your own by studying or searching the internet but same time kept the thing in mind that practices should be legal.

At the start of January, Forbes contributor, Denise Lee Yohn, shared this quote, followed by its definition. She wrote, “EX is the sum of everything an employee experiences throughout his or her connection to the organization”.

Employers will start to see a change from “human resources” to a fresher standpoint of HR, seen as “people operations”, in order to take full advantage of employee value. It’s all about your employee’s experience over time – from the application process to the day they leave your business.

Think about the employee involvement in four parts: value of work, culture, workplace, and technology.

What makes up the employee’s experience? First, there is value of work, and whether or not your employees find significance in the work they do. Second, there is culture, defined by the way your employees feel when they are at work and all the components that add to this – their collogues, the management, compensation and benefits, etc. Third, there is the workplace feature. Consider the physical workplace that your employees are in and how this permits them to be industrious and creative in doing their job. Lastly, there is the technology element, and giving your employees the utensils to do their job effectively. All of these components make up the employee experience that strengthens HR goals of increasing retention and decreasing the amount of employees who leave.

How can you win at the employee experience?

Here are six ways to help employers focus on building a better employee experience.

Revive youronboarding proceduresand processes: Make sure your employees feel welcomed on their first day and enthusiastic to start their employment voyage with your company.

Embrace the idea of allowing your employees to work remotely: Technology can be utilized almost anywhere. Take advantage of the machines and devices that allow your employees to work from home or different locations.

Foster an environment that is inclusive: Check in with your employees to make them feel like they’re part of the decision-making process. You want your employees to feel like they have a voice and can be heard.

Start a social committee: Inspire your employees to start or join a social committee and support them with it – this is a great way to build company culture and keep them happy.

Celebrate milestones: Mark your calendar with your employees’ key milestones and show that you recognize and appreciate them.

Welcome feedback: Try and gather information from your employees on job satisfaction and have them identify what they love, like and dislike about the organization.

There are a number of ways to focus on employee experience. There is no better way to create a hospitable experience than by incorporating these six elements. Our advice to employers is to start by thinking about the four parts that make up the employee experience and what will be the most cost-effective and rewarding to both your workforce and to your business.

Traditionally, political uncertainty is one of the biggest market movers with effects on the equities, Forex, and commodities market. Political commentators and Wall Street analysts have drawn up interesting inferences on the effects of political uncertainty on the markets after significant political events such as elections and referendums. For instance, the prevailing thesis on the effects of political uncertainty on the market is that Americans tend to vote for the same candidate or party if the economy is robust and they tend to vote for the opposition if the economy is weak.

Sam Stovall, managing director at S&P Capital IQ observes that the results of presidential elections shows that voters tend to give the state of the economy a high weighting in choosing the next president. In his words, “In 82 percent of the times that markets have climbed during August and October, the incumbent party has won. In 86 percent of the times the market has been down, the replacement party has won.”

It is already cliché that the markets hate uncertaintyand you can trust Wall Street to have a bullish performance in years when the election results are predictable than in years when the election can swing either way. The market doesn’t usually record much volatility ahead of election in which the incumbent is contesting reelection because the incumbent will most likely win and there won’t be much of a change in economic policies.

However, in the last U.S. presidential election between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the risks of change in economic and foreign policy was high because both candidates had widely different plans. Trump was easily the wild card because his proposed economic and foreign policy plans were ‘unconventional’ and Wall Street analysts were quick to opine that a Trump presidency will bring in a unprecedented level of uncertainty to the markets.

The effect of unexpected political events is muted on the markets

However, the chart above shows how U.S. equities and the volatility index have fared since Trump won the election. You’ll observe that U.S. stocks have booked gains since Trump won the election on Nov. 8 2016. The S&P 500 is up 10.70%, the NASDAQ Composite is up 12.33%, the Dow Jones Industrials is up 14.14%, and the Russell 2000 (small caps) is up an incredible 15.04%. Conversely, the fear gauge in the market has recorded a massive drop with the VIX index declining by 38.9% in the same period.

Steve Williamson, an analyst at Lionexo binary options observes that “the performance stocks in relation to the volatility index shows that U.S. equities have not been plagued by the expected volatility that should have resulted in a change in government.” In essence, it appears that political risk is starting to have a lesser effect on the markets.

Interestingly, 2016 showed many signs indicating that political uncertainty has lesser influence on the markets. For instance, the markets recovered from the shocking Brexit vote in four days despite the fears that the Britain’s exits from the EU might trigger chaos in the Eurozone. The whiplash in U.S. stocks after Trump’s surprise victory didn’t last more than four hours. Italians rejected proposed constitutional changes from Matteo Renzi’s pro-EU government and the effect of the referendum was lost on the Italian market in about four minutes.

Pro-EU market watchers have started drawing inferences on how the results of the upcoming French elections could affect forex markets in the EU, U.S., and the rest of the world. One of the top candidates in the French presidential election, Marine Le Pen has indicated that she’ll drop the use Euro in France – a move that might be the prequel to France’s exit from the EU.

It still a little too early to know if the results of the French elections will have a drastic effect on the market or not. However, based on the recent performance of the markets, we can safely bet that the markets will see a swift correction that will erase any volatility irrespective of how the French vote in the next election.

Growing a business requires proper strategy and working smart. Connecting with the right business partners is one of the key pillars for any business. Referrals may end up being the perfect partners for our business, but there is a part that you would have to play so that you can achieve this. Here are some tips, which you can apply so as to be able to connect to new business partners, easily.

Develop Solid Relationships

While the ultimate objective is to find partners, who you can work with to grow the business, take time to cultivate a good and strong relationship. This makes it easier for people to trust you and eventually want to invest their money in your business. Focus on adding value to the relationship with anyone that you get connected to. As long as you can have a solid foundation, this should play out to your advantage.

Seek Clarity and Answers

One of the best ways to tell if a person would be a great fit for your business is through conversation. Strike conversation with thought-provoking questions and pay keen attention to their responses. Have a strategy that allows the potential partner to talk most of the time and if there are any gray areas, seek clarification.

Keeping Scores Does Not Work

You should have an open mind and come alive to the fact that there are connections that will work, and others will fail. Do not keep a score of how much you have been giving out, without receiving. Set your mind to give at all times, without expecting anything in return. Once you have conditioned your mind this way, it becomes easier to connect with business partners, and there will be fewer disappointments.

Work on Your Reputation

Everyone loves to be associated with something good. One of the best strategies to win over business partners is by building a great reputation for the business. Pay attention to the strengths and weakness of the business and use them to make the necessary adjustment. Weaknesses should be used to come up with a learning agenda. If your business has a great reputation, anyone you approach to partner with you will actually feel honored.

Be Flexible

Being rigid is a good thing, only to a certain extent. If you are truly committed to the course of getting new people to connect with as business partners, you should be easy going. Always be at your best and try to impress the prospects within the shortest period of time. There are some people who lose connections right from the introduction. Have a strategy, an even if it means rehearsing, do not hesitate to do so.For any business to thrive and experience exponential growth, it would ideal to find business partners to work with. This does not need to be a complex thing, and as you can see, above, you can use very basic strategies to easily connect with business partners. Be open-minded, and you will be amazed at how much potential has been untapped out there.

To have a profitable and successful company you need to have your money invested in the right places. Whatever industry or sector you are trying to conquer, you have to put your money where your mouth is and show that you support all areas of your company to make it to the top.

Investing wisely in the right areas will not only help your company to grow, but it will also increase your business’ profit and help you stay ahead of your competition. However, you have to be willing to back what you believe in if you want it to work and perform. A financially healthy company is one that knows where to spend the money and why it’s important to ensure you deliver the best results for both yourself, your employees and your customers.

Below are a number of areas within your business which you can invest in further to reap the rewards. Use these tips to understand what’s going to help you find success.

People

Your employees are the backbone of your company, and they know a good employer when they see one. They work hard each day to make sure your business is not only surviving but thriving. Invest in good people and see how quickly your company starts to take a turn for the better. Talented, smart and hardworking employees are what will take your business to another level. Be choosy about the hiring process and select candidates who have a strong character, the right skills and are onboard with your vision.

Technology

These days you’d be silly not to invest in using technology to propel your business and make it more efficient. For example, many brands are adopting Digital Banking solutions to give them more control over the financial process. It helps deepen user engagement and makes processing payments more secure. You won’t regret spending the money when daily work is completed more efficiently and quickly, and your customers are more satisfied.

Innovation

You can’t stay where you are forever. That’s why you have to invest in innovation and give people the opportunity to be creative and come up with groundbreaking solutions to some of the most complicated problems you’re facing. This is one of the only ways you’re going to beat out your competition and make a name for yourself in the marketplace. You don’t want to be chasing your rivals and wishing you were doing a better job.

Marketing

You’re not going to get very far if no one knows who you are or what you sell. You need a clear and concise marketing strategy, the right people to manage it and execute it, and strong partnerships that help you succeed. There’s not much of a future for your business without any marketing. Provide a solid budget for your team and let them show you how much of an impact it has on the success of your company. There are now many marketing channels available that require careful management and a strategic approach.

For any brand, it is imperative to understand which social media apps are popular. You should do a market analysis so that you can tell which apps most of your customers are using. Online shopping has been integrated with social media apps, and as long as you can understand the shopping behaviors of your potential customers, then you will be able to get a huge share of the market.

Why Use Social Media

Social media has taken over the marketing industry to a great extent, there fore it is imperative to learn more of the benefits of Social Media Marketing. A number of studies indicate that most customers discover new items through social media. With the advance of technology, most shoppers use mobile devices for general browsing, and this is what necessitated the introduction of social media apps. Some of the benefits that you stand to gain through social media apps include:

Benefits of Social Media Apps

Get to promote your brand through posts and links to the products that you want to sell. This is a very simple, but quite effective method of marketing, which allows you to target specific people.

You will increase your turnover and revenue by embracing social media marketing.

Social media provides consumer insights and demographics, which you can rely on to make informed marketing decisions.

Instagram allows you to promote your brand extensively, through images. You will be able to find creative images, which you can be used to introduce new products and promote existing merchandise. People seem to appreciate the visual content to a great extent, which has made Instagram, become a big hit.

With the option of posting updates, Twitter has become one of the best social media apps for sending messages to your target audience, in the form of tweets. There is a limit of 140 characters, and as such, you should come up with precise posts that relay your message effectively. Twitter gives you the benefit of tracking your conversations and how viral the post goes.

If you are looking for professionals that can help you grow your business, then you should get active on LinkedIn. Put up an appealing profile page, which allows people to be able to get all the details about your company. You can use LinkedIn to promote your business through these professionals.

Facebook appears to be the mother of social media, and it has done incredibly well to keep up with the trends. This is, by far, the largest social network, and as long as you can understand how to make use of it, you will have a great opportunity to reach out to potential customers. With Facebook, you can post content, images and even videos, which allows you to reach a wider target audience. Every brand should be on Facebook and learn how to use it, in a professional manner.

These are some of the main social media apps, which can be used for different purposes. If you choose to use social media marketing as the main method of promoting your business, then you need to take note of these social media apps.

Spending money in business is a necessary requirement. Spending too much money on non-essential purchases is not – it’s important to be able to cut these business overheads as much as possible to create the most profitable business you can. If you feel that your costs are spiraling, it’s time to take a good look at your expenditure and work out some ways to reduce it.

Conduct A Review

The time will come when you look at your monthly expenditure compared to your monthly income and realize that something needs to be done about it. Great! That’s the first step to solving the issue. If you have an accountant, ask them for a list of your current overhead costs. If you do your bookkeeping yourself, you should be able to search for the list through your accounting software. With that list in hand, really delve into it, and be brutal; what costs can you afford to reduce? What can you do without completely? Look for things that you no longer need, or that could be found elsewhere for less money.

Speak to Your Employees

Your employees are the life-blood of your company, and they see it day in day out from a unique perspective. Ask them where they think costs could be saved, and how to make the business more efficient. You might be surprised with what they come up with. You don’t have to implement everything, but taking your employees’ suggestions into consideration could save you money. Remember to thank them for their contributions!

De-Clutter

If you have a storeroom, it’s likely that it’s filled with old printers and copiers, perhaps an old fax machine or two. You may no longer have a need for these items, but someone will pay you good money to take them off your hands – see what you’ve got and list it on an auction site, or in the local want ads section. You’ll raise some capital and clear some space at the same time.

Buy in Bulk

Although you might spend more money than you had intended to begin with, buying in bulk will save you money in the long term. Search for deals on the items that you use the most, such as printer paper, ink, envelopes, even coffee and toilet paper. You may be able to negotiate a great deal with your suppliers if you up your order. If you don’t have room to store the extra products in your office,rent a storage unit to keep them safe until you want them. The cost of your savings should off-set the cost of the rental so you’re still saving money.

Credit Cards

Don’t shy away from credit cards because you think they’re expensive or difficult to use. They could save you money if you use them correctly. Find a card that has the lowest monthly fees but that also gives you the most benefits, such as air miles, cash back, or other rewards. You can redeem the rewards and save yourself money on your travel, for example. If you pay the credit card off in full each month you won’t get caught up in the problem of interest accruing either.

It makes navigation easier whether you are driving or looking for a specific location on foot. If you are a business owner with a local store in your city, you can also leverage Google Maps to increase visibility among your local target audience.

Truth be told, things are now tougher for local businesses as they are facing competition from far and wide. You have to compete with online businesses with lower overhead costs which allow them to offer lower prices for the same products and services. In fact, the internet was supposed to be a death knell for brick and mortar businesses but this has not come to pass.

The Place of Local Search in Modern Business

Local search is becoming more influential as businesses seek to harness the power of the internet to bring more traffic through the door. Whether you are running a laundry business or a barber shop in your neighborhood, it is possible to boost the numbers by using local search engine optimization (SEO) tools of which Google Maps is the best.

Importance of Google Maps in Online Marketing

From the above information, the importance of local search cannot be gainsaid and this is the reason why Google Maps must form part of your SEO strategy. If your business is leveraging the maps and you have listed the company with NAP details, there is a higher likelihood of increased traffic. Users in the area, whether residents or visitors, will find it easier to find your location and this will in turn boost sales.

Research shows that 73% of all website users refer to Google Maps and listings to read online reviews and this should motivate you to adopt this tool as part of your SEO strategy. Your business has to be visible on Google 3-pack for you to reap the benefits. When your business shows up on that pack, the benefits of optimizing for local search become apparent.

Most people who have tried this Google marketing tool have decried how hard it is and truth be told, they are right. Like with every online marketing technique that is supposed to boost your business, there is a lot of hard work and ingenuity that is needed.

Some of the factors that are critical in giving your website a boost in Google’s 3-pack include:

Verification of your company on Google’s My Business page

Increasing presence of your business name on different online platforms including business listing platforms, Facebook, LinkedIn, Yellow Pages, Yelp, reviews and all other areas where internet users will be searching

Leveraging Geo-target

Average rating of your business and frequency of reviews on Google My Business Local Page.

Website domain authority

These are just a few of the factors that will determine your Google 3-pack listing. Our experts at http://www.rankingbyseo.com will work closely with you to optimize these factors to ensure your business shows up on the 3-pack.

Considerations for Better Google Maps Marketing

The question that comes to the mind of every internet marketer at this point is how best they can optimize Google Maps to promote their business. There is no denying that most of the challenges facing local businesses can be alleviated through the right use of Google Maps but to get there, consider the following:

Create a Google My Business Account – This is your ultimate tool when you are optimizing Google Maps marketing. A business account gives you a dashboard from where you can handle everything related to your campaign. When opening an account, you need to claim your business address, define your business radius, state your business category and make sure your business is Google verified.

Start optimizing your listings – This is where the real work begins because you have to be proactive about the process after verifying your business. There is more information that requires updating including business hours, consolidated contact information, business descriptions and photos of your business. Every feature that makes it easier to identify your business should be included. Make sure any images included are optimized with relevant information and targeted keywords.

Leverage customer reviews – One of the most effective ways to get noticed online is through customer reviews. According to a BrightLocal’s 2016 Survey, 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as recommendations. Some review sites your business should appear in include Yelp, Urbanspoon, Yahoo! Local, TripAdvisor and Google+ Local among others. Encourage customers to leave reviews, ask for valuable feedback from customers, make sure you handle negative reviews comprehensively, talk to return customers and ask them what brought them back as they will most likely give positive feedback.

Final Thoughts

There are no shortcuts in Google Maps marketing and that’s a fact. It is one of the toughest SEO strategies to pull off yet one of the most effective. There are no hacks to getting this done but if you are proactive, it is easier to get things done. For instance, keep a close look at your brand mentions and immediately correct any inaccuracies in contact information. It is also advisable to add new content that is of high value and which contains local references. Google will make this information available to the local audience which is every online marketer’s dream. Include address, landmarks, directions and other references. You should also build links with other local businesses, especially those closely related to your niche.

With Google My Business Account, you can update all your data from Google Maps, search and Google+. It is easier and cost-effective to manage local data using this dashboard. With all these benefits, isn’t it time you talked to a professional digital marketing specialist to leverage Google Maps marketing?